1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to an image forming apparatus including an image forming station for forming an image on a recording medium having an application device connected thereto for handling the recording medium or an original.
2. Description of the Prior Art
A recording apparatus such as a copying machine or a laser beam printer may have an application device connected thereto such as a sorter for sorting an accommodating recording medium having images recorded thereon or an original feeding device for feeding the original to a predetermined position.
The copying machine has an operation mode (called a book mode) in which light is exposed to the original while light exposure means such as an exposure lamp is reciprocated or an operation mode (called a sheet mode) in which the light is exposed to the original while the original is moved, or a dual mode of those two operation modes.
The sorter may have a sorter mode in which recording media (called copy papers) having images formed thereon and ejected from the copying machine are sorted and accommodated in bins in such a manner that each of the copy papers having the image of the same original formed thereon is accommodated in a different bin or a collator mode in which the copy papers having the images of the same original formed thereon are accommodated in one bin.
When the sorter is connected to the dual mode copying machine to sort and accommodate the copy papers, it is advantageous to select the following mode of the sorter. When the copy operation is carried out in the book mode in the copying machine, an operator selects the operation mode of the sorter so that the copy papers fed to the sorter from the copying machine are sequentially accommodated in the different bins of the sorter for each page of the originals. When the sheet mode of the copying machine is selected, the operator selects the collator mode of the sorter because the copy papers having images of different originals formed thereon are sequentially ejected from the copying machine so that the copy papers having the images of the different originals formed thereon by the copying machine are accommodated in the same bin of the sorter.
However, the designation of such operation mode must be carried out by the operator by operating mode designation means such as keys. This is troublesome to the operator.
In the image forming apparatus including the copying machine having the application device such as the sorter connected thereto, a power to the application device is fed from the copying machine or from a power supply separate from the copying machine. In any case, for the sake of safety, means is provided to automatically cut off the power supply when a door of the application device is opened.
Accordingly, when the door of the application device is opened during the copying operation, the power supply to the application device is cut off to stop the feed of the transferred papers in the application device. However, since the power to the copying machine is continuously supplied, the copy operation and the feed of the copy papers to the application device are continued. Consequently, the copy papers fed from the copying machine to the application device are not fed into the application device but jammed sequentially resulting in damage to a number of copy papers, which in turn may cause damage to the copying machine and the application device. In addition, a post-processing for removing the jammed copy papers is troublesome.